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This classic relic, probably from the reconquest of the Sudan 1896-97, is a typical Hausa weapon of the sort faced by Winston Churchill in the charge of the 21st Lancers at Omdurman. The blade has been carefully hand cleaned, but I have left the original patina on the guard. The blade is a classic mid-19th century product.

The Fuzzy-Wuzzies (Sudanese Muslim rebels - the direct ancestors of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt) must have been a brave lot, as Winston Churchill records that their heads brushed his boots as he shot them with his C96 broom-handled Mauser pistol in the nullah at Omdurman. Indeed, Rudyard Kipling also celebrated their bravery in his poem 'Fuzzy-Wuzzy', where he declares that they were 'the finest of the lot' of the British Empire's opponents.

Both the Hausa and the Tuareg used these blades widely, having bought them throughout north Africa from traders who had acquired them from Europe, in this case Solingen. Local blades in Africa are invariably of vastly inferior quality to this product.

It measures 4cm across at the forte and 3cm down at the point. The marks have been heavily punched - perhaps a small mechanical press? - indicative of the later blade (an 18th-century blade would have had a hand-punched mark). The three fullers run evenly to the point. The hilt is a little loose with age, but has the bulk of its leather binding intact.

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